Plumas County CA Archives History - Books .....Schools And Education 1882
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Book Title: Illustrated History Of Plumas, Lassen & Sierra Counties

SCHOOLS AND EDUCATION.

   At the time the county was organized, in the spring of 1854, no school had
yet been taught within its limits. But few children were to be found among the
throng of miners that then formed the population. The early emigrants were
chiefly single men, or men who had left their families at home, expecting to
return to them with a golden reward for their toil and privation. A few families
came in 1852, and each year thereafter, and here and there through the mines,
and especially in the valleys, were to be seen children. Nevertheless, so
scattered were these families that the maintenance of a school was impossible.
Those were pioneer times, when labor was the order of the day, and every boy old
enough to work was expected to do something, and had no time to spend at school.
Even after schools were opened, they were chiefly attended by little children, a
scholar over fourteen years of age being a rarity. 

   The court of sessions took occasion to divide the county into districts, on
the ninth of June, 1854, though there was yet no school in the county. Three
districts were created, embracing about the following territory: The townships
(as now defined) of Seneca and Mineral were District No. 1; Beckwourth, Quartz,
and Goodwin were District No. 2; and Indian and Plumas were District No. 3. A
school was opened that fall in the town of Elizabethtown, lying in the third
district, and was taught by W. K. Logan, at a monthly salary of $100. At that
time Elizabethtown, or Betsyburg, was the largest and most flourishing town in
the county. Its days were palmy, though brief. In the highly figurative language
of one of the early settlers, they "propped the doors open with $800 gold
chunks, and the children used nuggets for playthings." A number of families had
settled here, and there were children enough to maintain a school. The first
superintendent of common schools was Dr. I. N. Hartzell, who made a report for
the school year ending October 31, 1855. By this, it appears that while there
were 75 children in District No. 3, or Elizabethtown, between the ages of four
and eighteen, but 29 of them were able to attend the school at all, and that the
average attendance was but 16. This was due to the fact that many of the
children lived in Indian or American valleys, too far away to avail themselves
of the school privilege; while others were old enough to make their services
valuable in other directions. It was a primary school. District No. 1, or
Mineral, was reported with 18 children, so scattered that a school was not
practicable. The other district was not mentioned at all.

   The year 1856 saw the glory of Elizabethtown fade away, and Quincy came to
the front as the leading town of the district. On the seventh of October, 1856,
the board of supervisors changed the formation of school districts materially.
All the county north of the north fork of Feather river was made District No. 1;
all lying between the north and middle forks was District No. 2; and all south
of the middle fork was District No. 3. School having been discontinued at
Elizabethtown for more than a year, and Quincy having increased its juvenile
population to such an extent that educational facilities were desired, a school
was opened there in the summer of 1857. The teacher was Mrs. Sophie Sawyer, wife
of Woodbury D. Sawyer, then an attorney of Quincy, and now practicing his
profession in San Francisco. Her report is headed as follows: "Report of the
Public School in First District in the Town of Quincy, from June 1st to Oct.
5th, 1857." Signed, "Sophie Sawyer, Teacher." This document shows that the
number of scholars was 18; average age, 8 2/3 years; oldest, 13 years; youngest,
4 years; visitors during the term, E. T. Hogan, J. F. Ray, and W. D. Sawyer. The
only text-book mentioned was McGuffey's Reader.

   But a short time after the school was opened in Quincy, the settlers in the
eastern end of American valley decided to have a school in their midst for the
education of their children, the school at Quincy being too remote for their
accommodation. A subscription was therefore started, and the sum of $375 was
raised, chiefly in amounts of $25. One gentleman donated a "load of lumber," and
the parties who hauled it managed to get a "load" which was sufficient to build
the house. This was the first school-house erected in Plumas county, and stands
about two miles from Quincy. An engraving of the building is given on the
title-page. A meeting was held in the house July 2, 1857, and S. A. Ballou was
engaged as teacher, at a salary of $60 per month. Nineteen children attended the
school that summer. Agreeable to the wishes of the people who had built this
pioneer school-house, the board of supervisors set them off into a separate
district July 7, 1857, making all that portion of District No. 2 lying east of
Quincy into District No. 4. This is now known as Pioneer district. It is related
of this school that at one time two applications were being considered for the
position of teacher, one of them from a "Dutchman" and the other from a lady,
and that one of the trustees insisted upon employing the former because he would
take his pay in cabbage, turnips, etc. At another time a youth was asked by the
teacher on the first day of the term if he had brought any text-books with him.
"Yes'm," said he, as he produced from under his desk "The Life and Adventures of
James P. Beckwourth."

   From a school census population in 1854 of 93 children, and a school fund of
$141.93, the educational status of Plumas county has increased to a school fund,
in 1880, of $16,014.46, and a census population of 984 children, or an average
of $16.27 for the education of each child. The facilities for the education of
children in Plumas county are of a high order, and a good common-school
education, sufficient for the needs of a good American citizen, can be obtained
in these mountain schools by all who desire it. There is one in particular, the
Pioneer district before alluded to, that has no superior in the state for
effective work, and among other ungraded schools has no equal. This is due to
the care and intelligence of its teacher, George E. Houghton, and the excellent
management of the trustees, J. W. Thompson, D. E. Cate, and J. H. Yeates, aided
by the liberality of the residents of the district. The school has been under
the control of these gentlemen for the past four years, and now exhibits the
results of an intelligent and systematic course of training. For six months the
regular public school is maintained, and then for four months a private school
is continued by the subscriptions of the parents. It is called a private school,
although just as free to every scholar as during the six months of public term.
Pens, ink, paper, etc., of the first quality are supplied to the children free
of cost and without distinction of persons. Latin, French, the sciences, higher
mathematics, literature, etc., are taught in a systematic manner, and in this
way the school approaches the efficiency of a graded school. The primary grades
are also carefully taught. Business principles and forms are taught, and the
children have arrived at a stage of perfection seldom attained in a business
college. The teacher has no fixed rules of government, but expects the scholars
to behave themselves, and not abuse the privileges granted them. They are at
liberty to converse with each other on the subjects they are studying, to move
from place to place, and to retire from the room at will, and they make only a
proper use of these privileges. These things are only possible where both
teacher and pupils are thoroughly in earnest, and enter with heart and soul into
the work before them. It is a model school, and deserves the closest attention
of the educators of the county.


Additional Comments:
Extracted from:

Illustrated History of Plumas, Lassen & Sierra Counties

San Francisco: Fariss & Smith
(1882)

File at: http://ftp.rootsweb.com/pub/usgenweb/ca/plumas/history/1882/illustra/schoolsa117gms.txt

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